The 'Gates of Hell' Affair
by Avirra
Summary: Napoleon and Illya are in a tight spot on the Grecian isle of Thera. Written for the LJ Song Challenge - song used : Tom Petty's 'I Won't Back Down'.


**The 'Gates of Hell' Affair**

The two partners were running for their lives and so far, it was luck as much as skill and determination that was keeping them ahead of the THRUSH in pursuit of them.

"Napoleon! Above!"

That was all the air that Illya could spare, but it got the message across. Ahead of them was a ramp leading to what looked to be a fortified door. It looked to be the best bet that they'd seen for an exit out of this underground Grecian satrip on the island of Thera.

The 'Solo luck' seemed to be with them as the door opened for a scientist to exit just as they reached the landing. The man startled, but was unable to retreat and secure the door before Napoleon and Illya forced their way inside.

It became obvious all too quickly that instead of being a way out, they were now cornered in a control booth overlooked a pool of lava.

"Chyort . . . it would have been better had I not spotted this door."

Even as he spoke, Illya was snatching at the papers piled around the room, grabbing out his glasses to help him read them. Napoleon took a moment to shove the scientist back outside, then secured the door to room.

"We knew there wasn't going to be an easy way out of here, pal. At least we have chance to catch our breath."

Napoleon moved to where he could take a better look at the lava.

"Like a gate to Hell. What is it with THRUSH and their preoccupation with volcanoes lately? It was just a few weeks ago that we had to deal with their plans to activate volcanoes."

Illya wasn't answering. He was going back and forth between the pages in his hands and the panels in the booth. Then he turned and gave Napoleon a solemn look.

"You would agree with me that going back through that door would be suicide?"

"Barring all of the THRUSH personnel running out of ammunition at the same exact time? Yes. We'd be killed or, worse, captured."

"Then will you trust me to try out this equipment? It has not been tested yet, but it seems sound in theory."

"I'll always take a chance at life over the alternative, tovarich. What do you need me to do?"

"See what looks to be a closet door there? Go inside and strap yourself into the chair. It has a charge beneath that I will set off from this panel. It should act similarly to an ejection seat in a fighter plane and get you to the surface."

"Wait - what about you? If it has to be triggered from over there, how will you get out?"

"There is a firing delay that I can activate to give me just enough time to get to one of the other chairs. Go on, Napoleon. I will follow shortly."

"Promise?"

"I am not nor have I ever been suicidal, my friend. Go."

Claustrophobia was not normally a thing that got to Napoleon, but strapped in the small chair and not knowing when Illya would trigger the charge? He could hear the banging on the outer door and hoped that Illya had translated everything well enough to know what he was doing - and that he could do it before the door was breached.

His stomach lurched. Even though he'd tried to be prepared, the charge going off had Napoleon gripping the sides of his seat as he was propelled upward at a speed that he decided he was better off not knowing. There was a sharp metallic sound and he was in the open air. Fortunately, the chair only traveled upward a few feet above the ground before falling back down. Napoleon was winded and slightly bruised, but really nothing he couldn't walk off.

Unbuckling himself from the seat, he began to wait for Illya. A million possibilities were running through his mind of things that could have gone wrong. Napoleon had almost reached the point of trying to head back down when the second seat erupted from the ground bearing his partner.

Illya was rushing to try unbuckling himself and was already shouting at Napoleon to run. This time, however, he didn't obey. Napoleon rushed over and helped get the belts free before grabbing Illya and taking off running for higher ground with the blond in tow. He had no idea why they were running, but Illya never yelled without reason.

A rumble behind them almost knocked them off of their feet as lava shot up through the same tubes that the chairs had. The fiery fountains spurted a good ten feet into the open air, causing nearby vegetation to wither and burn. The fountains only lasted a few minutes and the two partners were panting as they watched them die down. When he finally caught his breath, Illya turned to Napoleon.

"Thank you for the assistance, Napoleon."

"Thank you for finding a way out. Think this will help discourage THRUSH from using volcanoes?"

"At the very least, it will not encourage them."

"I'll take that."

Pulling out his communicator, Napoleon contacted the Athens office to request their extraction.


End file.
